Atomic knows how to wring the most performance out of a pretty basic design: a poplar core, reinforced with a carbon spine to give it strength and glass to give it life. These are the primary parts of the Backland FR 102, a simple structure with just the right shape and baseline to take full advantage of its fundamentals.

A case could be made that the Backland FR 102 is really a pudgy all-mountain ski, for it handles groomers with nonchalant competence. But feeding the Backland FR 102 a steady diet of buffed boulevards is like offering perfectly steamed vegetables to a cat.

What the Backland FR 102 wants to dine on is a buffet of off-trail conditions. Its double-rockered baseline fits in the twisted troughs of today’s mogul fields. The cambered midsection gives the ski extra energy between turns, inviting the skier to move to its rhythmic beat. The sense of automatic weighting and unweighting is particularly evident in powder, where the Backland FR 102 would just as soon spend 100% of its time, but then, who wouldn’t?

The twist at the end of this short story is that the Backland FR 102 is due to retail at $499. This is a great deal for anybody who doesn’t want to empty the household treasury for a second pair of skis. Opposite ends of the age spectrum are both well served by all the Backland FR 102 has to offer for an affordable price. We don’t have an award for Best Step-Up Ski for the Younger Skier, but we do have a Silver Skier Selection award, which we bestow on the Backland FR 102.